When I purchased my tickets for Friday’s Pirates-Mets game, I didn’t realize I was buying into “Skyblast: Strike 2.”
For the uninitiated, Skyblast has been a popular promotion sponsored by the Pirates to draw crowds despite the performance of the team. And — sadly, in a way — it works. PNC Park was sold out last night, thanks to the post-game fireworks and a performance by Collective Soul.
The Post-Gazette’s Dejan Kovacevic complained in Friday’s edition that most of the crowd was at PNC to see fireworks and REO Speedwagon, not the Pirates.
I share his cynicism about the crowd, but I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised by Friday’s post-game concert and fireworks, which came after a 2-1 Pirates loss to the Mets. It was a heckuva pitcher’s duel, by the way, and fun to watch on a perfect evening. By the end of the game, the full moon was hanging just to the right of the Highmark/US Steel building, which made the view from inside the ballpark all the more spectacular. It was a curious, but stunning combination of natural and man-made wonders.
I hung around for three sets of Collective Soul tunes and three “blasts” of fireworks before deciding I should exit to beat the crowd — yes, most of the crowd was still there 45 minutes after the game had ended. But, I enjoyed the music and the fireworks, while realizing that not everyone would. It occurred to me that I would have enjoyed the evening just as much if I were sitting under that same moon, with the same cool breeze in the Arizona desert.
Here’s a taste of the fireworks: